So this is a thread to share your stories as someone who is hiring. Hopefully, it will make it clearer what people who hire for startups are looking for.
1. Intelligence. This should be obvious. Smart people, even if they are not currently competent in a given technology, business domain, or platform, are capable of becoming competent in it.
2. Interest in the job. I want people in my employ to enjoy what they do, and derive personal satisfaction from it. I don't abide clock-punchers who got a CS degree solely because there's good money in it.
3. Good work ethic. This is almost always unnecessary if #2 is met, but sometimes you will encounter candidates who love writing software, yet for some reason they choose to browse the web all day instead.